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puttyroot

American

[puht-ee-root, -root] / ˈpʌt iˌrut, -ˌrʊt /

noun

an American orchid, Aplectrum hyemale, having a slender naked rootstock that produces a leafless stalk with a loose cluster of yellowish-brown flowers.

Etymology

Origin of puttyroot

An Americanism dating back to 1810–20; putty ¹ + root ¹

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.